Abstract

Tuple-independent probabilistic databases (TI-PDBs) handle uncertainty by annotating each tuple with a probability parameter; when the user submits a query, the database derives the marginal probabilities of each output-tuple, assuming input-tuples are statistically independent. While query processing in TI-PDBs has been studied extensively, limited research has been dedicated to the problems of. Addressing this problem is the main focus of this paper. We introduce(B-PDBs), a generalization of TI-PDBs designed to support both (i)and (ii)in a principled and scalable way. The key idea of B-PDBs is to treat each parameter as a latent, Beta-distributed random variable. We show how this simple expedient enables both belief updating and parameter learning in a principled way, without imposing any burden on regular query processing. We use this model to provide the following key contributions: (i) we show how to scalably compute the posterior densities of the parameters given new evidence; (ii) we study the complexity of performing Bayesian belief updates, devising efficient algorithms for tractable classes of queries; (iii) we propose a soft-EM algorithm for computing maximum-likelihood estimates of the parameters; (iv) we show how to embed the proposed algorithms into a standard relational engine; (v) we support our conclusions with extensive experimental results.

Abstract

Belief Propagation (BP) is a widely used approximation for exact probabilistic inference in graphical models, such as Markov Random Fields (MRFs). In graphs with cycles, however, no exact convergence guarantees for BP are known, in general. For the case when all edges in the MRF carry the same symmetric, doubly stochastic potential, recent works have proposed to approximate BP by linearizing the update equations around default values, which was shown to work well for the problem of node classification. The present paper generalizes all prior work and derives an approach that approximates loopy BP on any pairwise MRF with the problem of solving a linear equation system. This approach combines exact convergence guarantees and a fast matrix implementation with the ability to model heterogenous networks. Experiments on synthetic graphs with planted edge potentials show that the linearization has comparable labeling accuracy as BP for graphs with weak potentials, while speeding-up inference by orders of magnitude.

Yang Jiao, R. Ravi, Wolfgang Gatterbauer

Abstract

We introduce a new set of problems based on the Chain Editing problem. In our version of Chain Editing, we are given a set of anonymous participants and a set of undisclosed tasks that every participant attempts. For each participant-task pair, we know whether the participant has succeeded at the task or not. We assume that participants vary in their ability to solve tasks, and that tasks vary in their difficulty to be solved. In an ideal world, stronger participants should succeed at a superset of tasks that weaker participants succeed at. Similarly, easier tasks should be completed successfully by a superset of participants who succeed at harder tasks. In reality, it can happen that a stronger participant fails at a task that a weaker participants succeeds at. Our goal is to find a perfect nesting of the participant-task relations by flipping a minimum number of participant-task relations, implying such a “nearest perfect ordering” to be the one that is closest to the truth of participant strengths and task difficulties. Many variants of the problem are known to be NP-hard. We propose six natural
k
-near versions of the Chain Editing problem and classify their complexity. The input to a
k
-near Chain Editing problem includes an initial ordering of the participants (or tasks) that we are required to respect by moving each participant (or task) at most
k
positions from the initial ordering. We obtain surprising results on the complexity of the six
k
-near problems: Five of the problems are polynomial-time solvable using dynamic programming, but one of them is NP-hard.

NFL baller
Adam "Pacman" Jones
was attacked by an airport employee in Atlanta returning from a family trip in L.A. And the video is a whole mess. Deets inside…

Adam "Pacman" Jones

Cinncinati Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones enjoyed a family trip to Los Angeles only to have it ruined when he made it back to Atlanta. Yesterday, the NFL player and his family hopped off a flight at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport when reportedly an ABM employee attacked Pacman!

According to reports, the employee – named
Frank Ragin
– "made a gesture towards Adam Jones." It’s unclear what the "gesture" was, but it was enough to piss Pacman off, so he confronted the man. That’s when a verbal altercation popped off and ish went all the way left.

Frank Ragin

I just witnessed pacman jones beat up an airport employee. Well this is atl i guess

— Hitman Karlito (@king_karlito) July 11, 2018

Not sure who took a leak in Frank’s Cornflakes that morning, but dude was in his feelings.

Cops spilled a few deets to TMZ saying:
"Mr. Ragin eventually struck Mr. Jones with a closed fist causing a laceration to Mr. Jones’ face. Mr. Jones then started to defend himself, causing Mr. Ragin to fall to the ground."

Someone was quick with their phone-whip-out game and caught the brawl on video:

It’s reported Pacman’s "female companion" as the reports stated (who we believe to be his wife
Tishana Holmes
) was injured during the scuffle.

Tishana Holmes

She injured her hand but declined medical treatment. Pacman declined medical treatment as well. Pacman’s wife celebrated her birthday recently, so they likely were coming back from the birthday festivities.

Happy Cday to my Cestfriend in the world !! Love you cihh !! Dam they don’t get it lol !!

A post shared by Adam Jones (@realpacman24) on

Last night was a fucking movie , I see you haters #getthestrap @50cent

A post shared by Adam Jones (@realpacman24) on

La vibes

A post shared by Adam Jones (@realpacman24) on

As for the attacker, he was sent to a nearby hospital to be treated for his injuries.

Cops determined Mr. Ragin was the aggressor, so he was arrested on 2 counts of battery. They are still investigating.

This tweet pretty much sums up this situation because Pacman isn’t a stranger to off-field altercations,
arrests
and things:

arrests

When you have Pacman Jones on the right side of things, you need to reevaluate your life decisions.#ATL

Bet Israel has just completed the first half of its planned six Havayat Havdala programs. We have been funded by the Cincinnati Jewish Federation for six outreach programs, with the goal of introducing ourselves to the larger Netanya Hebrew-speaking community. The first three took place in April, May and June.

Each program started on Motzei Shabbat with initial entertainment by Aitan Birnbaum and his trio who performed songs from Jewish sources and a Havdala ceremony conducted by Rabbi Irvin BIrnbaum. This was followed by a break for refreshments and then continued with a sing along of Israeli favorites from past decades accompanied by accordionist, Nehama Elal. Hosted by Bet Israel member MC Itzhik Efron, the evenings lasted about two hours and drew over 100 people each time, most of whom have never been in our community center and who know very little about the Masorti movement.

We are planning to continue with the final three programs in October, November and December. Both word of mouth and a full page ad in local weekly, Hashavua BeNetanya, have brought Hebrew speaking Israelis into Bet Israel and we are hopeful that we can continue to offer these programs into the coming year, as well as more programs such as a three day trip Havayat Tiyul to Ramat Hagolan at the end of October and a 6 part film festival in winter, starting January 2019.

was overwhelmin. Several people told me that they never had such an uplifting an inspiring experience in the Synagogue. Aiton’s, Sheer’s and Nitzan’s musical renditions were truly remarkable. So was Bat-Ella’s. Carmel and Sarah added to the Ma’ariv Service. And the dinner, compliments of Dani (CEO of Sodastream), with the lusty singing of most present led by Dani and Bat-Ella, rounded out an unforgettable evening. Participants enjoyed it SO much that, despite repeated requests not to applaud, they burst into spontaneous applause several times. Perhaps we can persuade those who made this experience possible to repeat it in the not too distant future. Our gratitude to the BICA ladies, Edith, Frieda and Suzanne, led by Hadassa, as well as to Yelena, for their indispensable help.

◊ We were devastated to hear of the passing of
Rachel Holman
's 4-1/2 year old grandson,
Yoav
. May his memory be for a blessing. Rachel, may you, Yoni and Yael, and the whole family, have only happy memories of this preciouslittle child. .

For those of us wishing to give in memory of Yoav z"l, the family requests that donations go to
"Lego Project"
This is a project for children in the serious illness wards of hospitals, who are visited regularly and brought gifts of Lego sets to help raise their spirits --- Yoav was one of them.For donations to Ezer MiZion Lego Fund, please contact *2236.

This year's
Tu Bish'vat seder
was led and organized by
Itzik and Debbie Efron
. Here are some
photos
.

Aida Miller
and
Jan Gaines
have jointly donated
a
defibrillator
to the synagogue, in loving memory of their mothers, z"l. On Monday 26th December, congregants who expressed interested in learning how to use the defibrillator watched a demonstration, which has been summarized by Marsha Stein.

The
new conditions for Social-Democratic work in Russia which have arisen since the October revolution have brought the question of party literature to the fore. The distinction between the illegal and the legal press, that melancholy heritage of the epoch of feudal, autocratic Russia, is beginning to disappear. It is not yet dead, by a long way. The hypocritical government of our Prime Minister is still running amuck, so much so that
Izvestia Soveta Rabochikh Deputatov
[2]
is printed “illegally”; but apart from bringing disgrace on the government, apart from striking further moral blows at it, nothing comes of the stupid attempts to prohibit” that which the government is powerless to thwart.

Solong as there was a distinction between the illegal and the legal press, the question of the party and non-party press was decided extremely simply and in an extremely false and abnormal way. The entire illegal press was a party press, being published by organisations and run by groups which in one way or another were linked with groups of practical party workers. The entire legal press was non-party— since parties were banned—but it “gravitated” towards one party or another. Unnatural alliances, strange “bed-fellows” and false cover-devices were inevitable. The forced reserve of those who wished to express party views merged with the immature thinking or mental cowardice of those who had not risen to these views and who were not, in effect, party people.

The
revolution is not yet completed. While tsarism is
no longer
strong enough to defeat the revolution, the revolution is
not yet
strong enough to defeat tsarism. And we are living in times when everywhere and in everything there operates this unnatural combination of open, forthright, direct and consistent party spirit with an underground, covert, “diplomatic” and dodgy “legality”. This unnatural combination makes itself felt even in our newspaper: for all Mr. Guchkov’s
Grey cotton zipped oversized hoodie Outlet From China qZtNs
witticisms about Social-Democratic tyranny forbidding the publication of moderate liberal-bourgeois newspapers, the fact remains that
Proletary
,
[4]
the Central Organ of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party, still remains outside the locked doors of
autocratic
, police-ridden Russia.